BENNY SCHMITT

Photo: Carson Meyer (@carsonmeyerphoto)

I grew up in the mountains and on the lakes of Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho.

You could find me on either the soccer pitch or a ski racing course in the great Pacific Northwest. Both sports came to me fairly easily and traveling for these activities came to be part of my family's lifestyle. They consumed my spare time and instilled a love for the outdoors and unfamiliar places. Eventually, my focus specifically switched toward my passion for skiing. I very much didn't like being told what to do, and that's why skiing appealed to me more than team sports. I could express my own style and there really weren't many rules. I ski raced through my freshman year of high school, but eventually even the minimal rules of ski racing got to be too much. I traded in my race skis and spandex for some park skis and baggy clothes and my journey to now began.

I moved to Tahoe when I was 17, met the right people in the industry, and have been traveling the world to ski since.  

Skiing is my life, my passion, my outlet, my drug of choice. It has provided me, my friends, my work, and my lifestyle. Thank you skiing. I wouldn't have it any other way.